


Portal Possibilities

by BiblioPan



Category: Community (TV)
Genre: F/M, Fluff and Humor, Friendship
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-14
Updated: 2020-10-14
Packaged: 2021-03-09 01:55:19
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 690
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27006931
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BiblioPan/pseuds/BiblioPan
Summary: Troy, Abed, and Annie find a shared activity after moving in together and relax in their home. Nothing but fluff and friendship and thoughts of something more here friends!For Flufftober Prompt Fill 14: Possibilities.I have been LOVING my rewatch of Community (yep, I'm one of the 7 people who watched it live lol) and the friendship of Troy & Abed, later Troy & Abed & Annie, still holds up and is SO important in these uncertain times. Happy Fluffy Reading!
Relationships: Annie Edison/Abed Nadir, Troy Barnes & Annie Edison & Abed Nadir, Troy Barnes/Annie Edison
Comments: 10
Kudos: 21
Collections: Flufftober2020





	Portal Possibilities

It’s not unusual for Annie, Troy, and Abed to squeeze onto the couch to play Portal 2, the only Xbox game they can all agree on. They can sneak glances at each other's controllers, sheepishly sliding their eyes back to the screen when caught, gleeful when they solve a puzzle and cheering when transported to the next location. 

\---------

If Annie’s hand grazes Abed’s as they reach for more popcorn (unflavored to leave the controllers reasonably clean), well that’s happenstance; any contact thrill that rushes through her body should be written off as high energy from the game. 

If Troy’s joyful whoop at reaching another level also comes with a one-armed hug that pinches her ribs and leaves her slightly breathless, well, that’s how normal young people get when playing games. Annie has never known what normal is for any age, so this is just more social research so she can finally pass. 

Any butterflies in her stomach or doe-eyed looks from Troy need to go in the “lock it up, Edison” box and shoved in the back of her brain. Shaking the thoughts from her head and tossing her hair over her shoulder, Annie laughs at the robot’s antics and thanks herself again for letting go of caring what others think and actually having  _ fun _ . 

\---------

Yeah, yeah, this is cool. Along with having 24/7 Abed Hours, Troy can now get Annie facts, figures, and smiles almost any time of the day. And once she’d seen that video games could include puzzles, they’d had to make a color-coded schedule of when they were all home to keep her from finishing the game without them.

He catches a hint of the clean, herbal scent of her shampoo as he mashes the buttons. Her hair tickles his nose briefly before she tucks the strands back behind her ear. "Shirley got that Aveda connection again, huh?” he asks, hoping he pulls off a relaxed tone as he stares at the screen.

Annie leans back and raises an eyebrow. “What? Oh yeah, and gosh, I’ve gotten so spoiled with it I can’t imagine going back to the knock-off stuff. I know you both would never notice, but Britta and Shirley cluck over my split ends like mean girls.

Troy waits until she leans forward to spot the next portal and then allows a soft smile to spread across his face. “Oh no, Abed and I notice shit like that too. The Aveda products smell good and make you smile more than when you use other stuff.” 

He says the last part more softly and refocuses on the game, hoping Annie might let something go, just this once. 

Nope.

\---------

Annie pauses the game and shifts to face Troy. “I’m sorry, it what?”

Abed usually likes watching these awkward interactions, but they’ve been playing this game for 17 days in a row, and he wants to get back to playing Dead Space with Troy without worrying about giving Annie nightmares. 

Abed begins without preamble: “In addition to being softer, bouncier, and healthier with the Aveda products, your hair also produces a pleasing odor. It reminds Troy of his grandma’s garden, which he associates with comfort.” He tilts his head to the right and purses his lips, then adds: “Actually reminds me of my grandma’s garden too. Which is nice.” 

Abed observes the anticipated flush cross Annie’s cheeks, followed by the ever-present, “Awww, you guys,” as she lightly punches Troy’s shoulder and then his own. His mind wanders to his kiss with Annie, scorched in his mind from the last paintball fiasco. He analyzes it for meaning once again but the results are unclear. Tired of running this particular scenario unsuccessfully, he vows to query Troy during Hygiene Hangout tonight (their allotted discussion of the day’s events as they brush and floss).

He relaxes into the whole-body tingle that accompanies a final decision and turns to his roommates. “Stop at the next level and order pizza?” They both nod, grinning widely, and their shoulders drop in unison. He files away their simultaneously given orders and hopes this particular timeline continues to produce pleasing evenings like this one.

**Author's Note:**

> Gah I just love these three so MUCH! I have some other Community ideas and have enjoyed connecting with this fandom (mainly through Craig/Jeff stories). Happy to join y'all here!
> 
> Thanks to my dear EggplantSalad for beta work and to all of you for reading. Happy Flufftober!


End file.
